Single White Female Read Online Free PDF

was making him come apart.
    “You have to do that?” he asked. “Turn on that damned light?”
    “What do you mean by naive? That I trusted you?”
    Now he did roll onto his side to face her, his head resting on his upper arm so that his cheek was scrunched up. His eyes were still narrowed to the light. “No. But I don’t want you to think an accidental affair with another woman means anything important.” He scooted toward her, touched her hip gently with his fingertips, making her suddenly aware and ashamed of her nakedness. She pulled away violently, startling him. “Allie, please!”
    Allie kept her distance. “She said on the phone she thinks you’re married. Talks as if you lied to her, led her to believe she was the only one in your life. The way you’ve been lying to me.”
    “The point is, it doesn’t matter a gnat’s ass to me what she thinks.”
    “Sure, I can believe that.”
    “Oh, c’mon, Allie. You’re mad right now, not thinking straight. Not putting this in perspective. And I don’t blame you. But it was a onetime affair of the glands, not the heart. And it’s over, I swear it! It meant no more than a shared dance that can never happen again.”
    “Lisa would disagree with you, I bet.”
    “Maybe. But so what? I only care what you think, Allie. That’s all that’s important to me in this crazy world. Honestly. You believe me, don’t you?”
    “No.”
    He made a sound almost like a moan. “I don’t know what I can do about that. I only wish I could do something to make you see the facts. The Lisa thing just sort of happened and then ran its course and no longer matters. Please, Allie, accept that as the truth, because it is.”
    “You’re not denying it, only repeating that it doesn’t matter.”
    “I don’t like lying to you. Never did. I admitted I slept with Lisa Calhoun. If you need to hear it again, I’ll admit it again. I can’t see why you don’t realize the rest of what I’m saying’s true.”
    “I don’t need to hear it, Sam. Not anymore.”
    “Well, yeah, I guess not. Allie?”
    She knew his wheedling, little-boy voice. Right now it sickened her. Sam was about to ask her forgiveness. She couldn’t handle that. She reached out an arm and hurriedly switched off the lamp.
    “That’s better, Allie.” He’d assumed she wanted to go back to sleep, that their discussion was over at least until morning.
    She said, “Get out, Sam.”
    “What?”
    “Out. Now.”
    “Hey, I know it’s your place, but it’s midnight.” He switched on the lamp on his side of the bed, then glared at her so she could see he was furious. He hadn’t expected this, his look said. Didn’t deserve it. She was being damned unreasonable, and all because of some insignificant one-night stand that had come to light. “Where do you expect me to go at this hour?”
    “Find a hotel. Come back tomorrow for your things. Or the next day. Or don’t come back at all. I don’t care, Sam, not anymore.”
    He appeared puzzled for awhile. Injured. Then he tried a smile. It was male mastery time. But he was acting out of desperation and she knew it. “I don’t believe you,” he said, like a line from a movie, as if the script was on his side and their destiny was in the last reel.
    She wasn’t sure if she believed herself, but she looked away from him. “Get out.”
    Sam clutched her arm and she slapped his hand away. She was startled by how loud a sound it made.
    He stood up, naked, his maleness wilted between his legs. He located his jockey shorts and danced into them, yanking them tight. You’ll hurt yourself that way, Sam. He found his pants.
    She turned away from him, watching his madly writhing shadow on the wall as he stormed around, wrestling angrily into his clothes. A button clattered on the floor, bouncing and rolling.
    Then the shadow was still. He’d worn himself out; she could hear his deep and rapid breathing, like right after sex.
    Calmly, he said, “All right, Allie.